Hogwarts: Class of 1978
by rokchichomesickg
Summary: Lily Evans receives her Hogwarts letter. Some flashbacks. Mostly original material, though (Note: I do NOT own Harry Potter or the characters). I might switch up the POV between Lily and James. I'm trying to keep in mind that this is a time when Voldemort is strong-he has the Death Eaters, a body of his own, etc. So there may be some kind of dark foreshadowing later on.
1. Chapter 1

It was a sunny day, half past noon when the Evans family received quite a shock. There was nothing extraordinary about them, really. Mister Evans worked as a landscaper for the types of people who wanted their buildings or houses to look posh. He often remarked that he liked the work because it was simple, creative labor that people can enjoy as art. Mrs. Evans was a school teacher, and rather a good one at that. She was always patient, but very firm. Their eldest daughter, Petunia, was the type of girl who could be extremely loyal or extremely petty. She had thin, reedy features and long, dark hair that nearly reached her waist. Lately they had seen a change in her attitude toward their youngest daughter, Lily.

She was different from Petunia, for many reasons. She had a warm personality, and hair the color of autumn leaves. Her face was angled, though hidden by childish features, as she was only eleven years old. Lily was the reason the Evans family would never be the same.

On Saturday, January the twenty-third of 1971, an owl unceremoniously swooped down from the heavens to land on the windowsill. It rapped its beak hard against the glass pane, gaining attention from the family within. Lily's heart beat wildly in her chest. She knew that the letter in the owl's beak was for her.

"Heavens!" Mr. Evans exclaimed, standing up from the dinner table to open the window. He reached his hand out and took the letter from the owl with some trepidation. "Lily, dear, it's for you."

Lily fought to keep her excitement under control. Petunia had caught her and her friend Severus discussing the letter a few weeks ago, but her parents knew nothing. That would change today. Lily held her hand out and took the letter from her father. It was specifically addressed to her. It read:

Miss Lily Evans

The Green Bedroom

Watford Avenue, Spinner's End

England

"Well, aren't you going to open it?" asked Mrs. Evans. Lily supposed she should. She flipped the letter over and saw it was sealed with red wax, with a crest split into four sections: lion, badger, eagle, and snake. She broke the seal and pulled out the letter.

"What's this all about, then?" asked Petunia bluntly.

"I've been accepted to a school for magic," replied Lily, skimming her eyes across the page. She looked up to see confusion plain on her parents' faces.

"Come again?"

Lily didn't want to explain so instead she handed the letter to her father to read for himself.

"Dear Miss Evans, you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry! Look, dear," he said, showing his wife the letter.

Lily's mother put her hand to her chest and beamed proudly.

"Can you imagine? Lily, learning magic! I can't quite believe it," she exclaimed.

"Well, if you ask me, she's a freak," said Petunia with a sneer. Lily pursed her lips and tried to rein in her temper. Magical things happened when she got emotional.

"Now, Petunia, that wasn't very nice. Apologize to your sister," said Mrs. Evans firmly. Petunia crossed her arms defiantly.

"I won't! Lily's the freak, not me," she said. Lily pursed her lips. She had already been through this argument with Petunia once.

"Then you will go to your room without dessert," replied their mother. Petunia's mouth hung open in surprise before she snapped it closed and stomped off down the hall to her room, huffing all the way.

"Now about this school, Lily," said Mr. Evans. Lily tore her eyes from the empty hallway and back to her father. "This says term begins September first, and that we have to reply by July thirty-first so I suppose it's good that it came so early."

"What else does it say, Dad?" Lily asked.

"Let's see," he said, pushing his reading glasses higher up his nose. "You'll need a uniform. Black wizard's robes. I don't know where we'll get them, but let's read on. There's a book list, as well. A wand-"

"A wand?" Lily asked excitedly.

"Don't interrupt your father, dear," said her mum fondly. Lily waited for her father to continue.

"A wand," he said, smiling at her, "a cauldron, crystal phials, a telescope, and brass scales. It also says you can bring an owl, a cat, or a toad. You don't have a pet, so we'll not worry with that for now."

Lily smiled at her parents, thankful that they were such understanding people. Her friend Severus had told her that some people don't take the news of having a magical child well. In all honesty, Lily had already known she was a witch.

One day, she had been playing with Petunia by the bank of the River Banwell. A boy had stepped out from behind a tree and introduced himself to her as Severus Snape.

"Alright? I'm Lily, and this is Petunia," she said, gesturing to her sister. Severus had ignored Petunia entirely.

"Are you one, too?" he asked. It had confused Lily and prompted her to ask what he was talking about.

"A witch. I'm a wizard."

At first Lily thought he was joking.. When she had confirmed that he was, in fact, not joking at all and was entirely serious, she began to ask questions. She hardly even noticed that his clothes were too big and so mismatched it looked deliberate. Petunia had stomped off toward the house for some reason, but Lily hadn't been worried about it. She and Severus became fast friends. They spent every day together, doing small bits of magic. He eventually began to talk more to her, and had told her about Hogwarts.

"We'll be getting our letters soon, I think," he'd told her. And she had!

Her father was staring at the letter, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. He looked up at Lily and smiled.

"Well, I suppose we have a witch in the family. Isn't it wonderful?"


	2. Chapter 2

Now that Lily had finally gotten her Hogwarts letter, she had to endure eight months until school. Eight months, whose time had seemed to slow to a crawl, though she still had Severus to keep her company until then. Petunia had taken to calling her "freak" whenever she could get in a word. Lily's temper couldn't hold up under the stress, and she had accidentally made steam shoot out of her ears for a solid three hours.

"She doesn't understand us," Severus told her as they skipped rocks on the river. "She's ordinary."

Lily scrunched up her face, knowing that Severus was right, but not wanting to concede the point. Maybe Petunia was just jealous that Lily had magic and she didn't.

"But she still shouldn't call us freaks. It's not nice at all, Sev."

Severus gave Lily one of his sad smiles.

"Not everyone is as nice as you, Lily," he replied solemly. Lily scuffed at the dirt with her shoe.

"I know, but Tuny's just getting nasty now. You're the only one who talks to me anymore, besides my parents."

Lily could've sworn that the smile Severus wore was one of satisfaction.

"You're better than them anyway. Just ignore them," he told her. Lily sighed, knowing that she could never change her friend's mind, no matter how much she wanted to.

Sev had told her once that his father didn't like much of anything, but Lily had figured that that Mr. Snape just didn't like his son. Lily wondered why, but she never asked Severus anything he didn't want to answer. She had to admit that he was looking skinnier than usual. She didn't mention it, though. Severus was proud and didn't like having anyone's pity.

"Well, we won't have to put up with it for much longer, will we? In a few months, we'll be going off to Hogwarts," she said matter-of-factly.

"Right," said Sev.

"Well, I've got to get back home. Mum will have supper ready," she said, skipping one last rock before dusting off her hands. Sev nodded but didn't say anything. She knew he always hated going back home. Lily couldn't blame him. She had only met Mr. Snape once and he was a piece of work. She laid a comforting hand on Sev's shoulder. He didn't smile, but he didn't shrug her off either. "I'll be here tomorrow. Same time?"

"'Course," he replied. "As always."

Lily dreaded going home herself these days. Petunia would relentlessly call her "freak" when Hogwarts was mentioned. She set off down the street toward her house, which was only a few minutes away. It had been raining for the past few days, and the air had a fresh, earthy smell that Lily loved. It smelled like home. January had passed into February so Lily had made sure to dress warmly. She pulled her coat tighter as the wind blew around her. Soon she was at her front door. Sighing, she turned the knob and stepped inside, stomping any excess dirt off her shoes and taking them off in the hallway.

"Lily, is that you?" she heard her mother call.

"Yes, Mum!" she called back. "I was with Sev." Lily walked into the kitchen, where she found her mother setting the table.

"You were with the Snape boy again?" Lily nodded. "Good," said Mrs. Evans. "He's a quiet boy, but everybody needs friends, right?" Mrs. Evans gave her daughter a fond smile and stirred something on the stove. "Dinner's almost ready, dear. Go get Dad and Petunia."

Lily went to her father's office and opened the door slightly. It looked like he was going over some kind of sketch for work. He looked up at her and smiled wearily.

"Mum says dinner's ready," she told him.

"Right. Did you have a good time with Severus, then?" he asked. Lily shrugged.

"Same as always, I guess."

"Alright. I'll be out in a minute."

Lily shut the door and went to get Petunia. She knocked before entering, but not before she heard her sister talking on the phone to one of her friends.

"Honestly, it's like Mum and Dad don't even notice me anymore. It's all about Lily now. Her, and that skinny boy she's always with. They're both freaks. I don't see what's so special about them."

To hear Petunia say such nasty things broke Lily's heart. She had wanted to look up to her older sister, but now she couldn't, not when she couldn't accept Lily the way she was, and to say such mean things about Sev was uncalled for. Petunia didn't even know him! In a fit of temper, Lily pushed the door open forcefully and stood framed in the doorway. She clenched her fists and ground her teeth, trying to keep herself under control.

"I've got to go," Petunia said into the phone. A moment later, she set it back down on the receiver. "Don't you knock?" she sneered at Lily.

"Mum says dinner's ready," she replied, struggling to keep her voice even. She turned her back on Petunia before she could no longer contain her magic.

"What? You're not going to turn me into a toad?" Lily looked back at her sister.

"Why should I? You're already nasty enough as it is."


End file.
